WCHS hoops ready for a busy summer

The Pioneer basketball team is spending the summer gearing up for its upcoming season.

With tryouts for the freshman and varsity teams already complete, coach Ryan Smith?s team attended a playday last week at Spencer, and has three team camps coming up this month.

The Pioneers took on Van Buren County and Clarkrange at last Thursday?s playday, picking up victories in both contests.

?We looked all right,? Smith said. ?We were kind of sluggish in the first game against Van Buren, but we?re making progress individually and as a team.?

?We?ve got juniors making progress, and sophomores jumping in and stepping into bigger roles, so even though we lost six seniors, I believe we?ll have guys stepping into those leadership positions as we keep working together.?

While looking for a new group of leaders for his varsity team, Smith said he is excited about the depth of next year?s 17-man freshman team.

?Thirteen of the 17 players are multi-sport student-athletes,? he said, ?and I?m also encouraged by the fact that five different county schools are represented on the team.?

The Pioneers will have a busy June, beginning with a team camp June 8-10 at Wilson Central High School. On June 15, the team will travel to Gallatin for another three-day camp, and they?ll hit the road for the University of Chattanooga?s three-day camp June 20-22. At each camp, the varsity and junior varsity Pioneer programs will compete in three games per day.

The freshmen began practice on May 30, and will attend both the Wilson Central and Gallatin team camps.

Next Monday and Tuesday, June 5-6, the Pioneer basketball staff will be hosting 14 teams for their inaugural Middle School Basketball Team Camp.

Teams from Cannon, Coffee, Cumberland, Franklin, Overton, Rutherford, Sumner and Van Buren will be attending, as well as Warren County schools. Entry to the camp is free to all county schools, and admission for adults will be $2 per day for all games. Children under 6 years old will be admitted free, and concessions will be available.

Smith and his staff will be holding the Future Pioneers Basketball Camp July 10-12, for boys in grades 1-8. Details on that camp, including how parents may preregister at a reduced price, can be found in the ?Sports Briefs? in Sunday?s edition of the Standard.